PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL 6th SESSION

Date |29 APRIL, 2004ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA

COMMUNIQUÉ OF THE SIXTH SESSION OF THE PEACE AND SECURITY COUNCIL

The Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU), meeting in its sixth session, on 29 April 2004, adopted the following communiqué:

A. ON THE SITUATION IN SOMALIA

The Peace and Security Council:

1. Calls upon the Somali leaders to demonstrate increased commitment to enable the early and successful conclusion of the Somalia National Reconciliation Conference at Mbagathi, Kenya. Council stresses the fact that Africa and the international community at large would not understand that the ongoing efforts to reach an inclusive solution be yet thwarted by the lack of cooperation of some leaders and factions;

2. Welcomes the decision of the IGAD Facilitation Committee to proceed to Phase III of the Reconciliation Conference at Mbagathi and, for that purpose, to convene a Ministerial Meeting. In this respect, Council urges all members of the Facilitation Committee to participate in that Meeting at the appropriate ministerial level;

3. Encourages the IGAD countries to display the level of cohesion required to facilitate the conclusion of the Reconciliation Conference;

4. Urges the international community to continue to provide the financial resources needed to ensure the early and successful conclusion of the Reconciliation Conference;

5. Reiterates the need for all AU Member States, in particular the countries of the region, and the other neighboring countries, to scrupulously adhere to the UN Security Council resolutions on the arms embargo on Somalia and urges them to extend full cooperation to the UN Monitoring Group. In this respect, Council requests the Commission, in consultation with IGAD and its Member States, to take all actions deemed appropriate to enhance the implementation of the arms embargo;

6. Welcomes the continued stability in the region of Somaliland and encourages the Chairperson of the Commission to continue to engage the authorities of that region, with a view to securing their support to the ongoing efforts to promote reconciliation in Somalia and restore the unity of the country;

7. Welcomes the efforts of the UN agencies and other international organizations, including the African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU/IBAR), and NGOs, in providing assistance to the Somalis, amid the prevailing conditions of insecurity.

B. ON THE SITUATION IN THE COMOROS

The Peace and Security Council:

1. Expresses satisfaction at the smooth organization of the elections of the Parliaments of the Islands and of the Union in March and April 2004;

2. Commends the Comorian parties for the spirit of cooperation they have demonstrated in the implementation of the Agreement of 20 December 2003 on the Transitional Arrangements in the Comoros;

3. Congratulates the AU Military Observer Mission in the Comoros (MIOC) for the quality of its work and encourages the Mission to pursue the efforts made within the framework of the execution of its mandate. Council thanks the countries that have provided military observers;

4. Expresses its gratitude to South Africa, which coordinates the regional efforts on the Comoros, and to the other countries of the Region and the Troika, for their commitment and their contribution to the reconciliation process in the Comoros;

5. Further expresses its gratitude to the partners of the AU, particularly the Francophonie, the League of Arab States, the European Union, France and the Indian Ocean Commission, as well as to Germany, for the support they have given to the reconciliation process and the efforts of the AU and stresses that the continuation of such cooperation is essential for the promotion of lasting reconciliation and stability in the Comoros;

6. Urgently appeals to all the Comorian parties to continue to demonstrate its spirit of responsibility and compromise in the finalization of the establishment, and the functioning of the new institutions of the Union of the Comoros. In that regard, Council requests the Comorian parties to place the interest of the Archipelago and of its people above any other consideration and to continue to work in the spirit of consensus which has guided the process so far;

7. Urges the Comorian parties to comply scrupulously with the relevant provisions of the Agreement of 20 December 2003 relating to customs and budgetary and matters, in order to create conditions for increased international assistance, which is, more than ever before, required for the socio-economic recovery of the Archipelago. In that regard, Council requests the Follow-up Committee on the implementation of the Agreement of 20 December to take the necessary measures to ensure compliance with the Agreement, pending the adoption of the organic laws that would govern the distribution of powers between the Union and the Autonomous Islands;

8. Appeals to the international community, particularly the donors, to provide the necessary financial and economic support for the socio-economic recovery of the Comoros.